Watchmen: Red Son
by John Hawkman
Summary: What if Dr. Manhattan was created in the Soviet Union? What if Nite-Owl was in the air force? What if Walter Kovaacs married Silk Spectre? Find out now...
1. Chapter 1

Watchmen: Red Son

_Author's Note: this story is kind of an 'Elseworlds' story. I took elements from Superman: Red Son, and threw in a few of my own ideas._

April 1st, 1962, 06:23…

The phone rang by the man's bedside table. He stirred in bed for a moment, and then picked up the phone. He didn't want to wake his wife up.

"Walter Kov…I mean, Walter Colfax, New Frontiersman," he said

"Walter, its Seymour," said a nervous voice, "Have you heard the news?"

"No, what is it?"

"It's the Russians."

Walter sat bolt-upright in bed. The R-word scared him.

"What have they done now?" Walter nervously reached under the bed, where his gun was

"Well, last night this scientist, who they thought had been killed in a nuclear explosion, he came back and…he's powerful."

"How powerful? Are we talking Coney Island Strongman, or…"

"On the video they had on the news, he could blow up tanks from one hundred feet away, he could teleport himself directly inside a nuclear explosion, and he survived."

"I'd better get to the office," Walter pulled on his trousers, "Laurie, I'm going to work now."

The office of the New Frontiersman was very busy, considering how small the offices were. Walter walked right to his office, where his reporters were standing.

"OK, Seymour, tell me everything you know about this guy: who he is, where he came from, what was he working on?"

"They're calling him Dr. Nuclear," Seymour said, "Apparently, he used to be Dr. Osterov, but he supposedly got shut in an intrinsic field subtraction machine. He came back to life last night, but other people say they saw him as a skeleton or a hovering brain…"

"I have pictures," Bernie added

He handed Walter a photo. Walter stared at it; there was a bald blue man, almost seven feet tall, wearing a black jumpsuit.

"What's that on his forehead?"

"Hammer and sickle. It's his symbol."

A man walked into the office later that day. He was a tall man, wearing his air force uniform.

"Excuse me," he growled, turning to Seymour, "I had an appointment with Mr. Colfax."

"He's…" Seymour saw the look in the man's eyes. Pitch black. Like the devil's eyes, "I'll go get him."

"Hurm…"

"Major Dreiberg!" Walter called, "Thanks for coming in."

"Thanks for letting me come," Dreiberg replied, "Yours is the only newspaper I like."

"Uh huh…" Walter was nervous, "So, what's the military's stance on Dr. Nuclear?"

"We've already positioned our spy satellites to monitor his every move, but there's nothing stopping him from shooting them down."

"Can he do that?"

"Probably. Colonel Mason has ordered all our scientists to analyze him, trying to find his weakness."

"Could I have the names of the scientists?"

Major Dreiberg handed him a card.

"Come by the base when you get off work. I'll introduce you."

Major Dreiberg left the building, but he was not alone. Walter Colfax had walked into the archives, and locked the door. The room was dark, and had several bookcases full of newspapers. Walter slid one aside, and revealed his hidden tunnel.

"I love this part," he grinned

Walter walked inside, and shut the bookcase behind him. Lights turned on, illuminating the tunnel, and revealing a hat stand. Walter took down the coat, and reached into the pockets. He slid his metal mask and gloves on, his own design. The metal mask was white, with a black Rorschach design in the middle. Walter chose it based on his desire to cure the city, and remembering the people his psychiatrist father had cured with his Rorschach paintings. The mask, the coat, and the gloves were all part of his secret identity. When he put them on, he shed his mild-mannered tendencies, and became The Rorschach, vigilant vigilante.

The Rorschach walked out of his tunnel, and saw Major Dreiberg getting into his car. Quickly, he climbed up the building's fire escape, and ran across the rooftops, following the Major. The base was five miles from the New Frontiersman; The Rorschach could make it if he tried. He leapt across the local deli and up to an apartment block, and realized Dreiberg wasn't going to the base. A couple of streets away, Dreiberg stopped in front of a garage, and walked to the apartment on top of it. The Rorschach took out his binoculars, and looked through the windows. Dreiberg was talking to some grey haired old man.

"He looks familiar…" The Rorschach said to himself

The curtains closed, and The Rorschach let out a loud groan. But, he took a deep breath, and forgot his anger. He reached to his coat pocket, and took out one of his books; he always kept a paperback with him whenever he went on patrol. This week, it was The Fountainhead.

Soon, Dreiberg left the apartment, and drove back to the base. The Rorschach climbed to the ground, and walked across the road. He knocked on the door.

"Coming…" came a voice

The door opened, and The Rorschach realized where he recognized the man from; he was Edward Blake, formerly the crime fighter known as Punch-Line. He foiled several crimes, and his signature move was his left hook. The Rorschach had read his book.

"Mr. Blake, sir," The Rorschach said, in his deeper voice, "I'd like to talk to you."

"Ah, another story seeker?" Blake grinned, "Come inside. I just made lemonade."

The Rorschach walked inside. He saw the place was very clean; Punch-Line's old uniform hung above the fireplace; it was a yellow boiler suit, with a laughing-face belt buckle.

"Actually, I'm an investigative reporter," he said, "I'd like to talk to you about the man who just came to see you."

"Oh, that's just Daniel," Blake sat down in his chair, "He comes round every week or so, talks to me about the air force."

The Rorschach took out his notepad.

"I seem to remember, you served in World War Two, along with several other Anti-Crime Clan members. I happen to know one of them is now the superior of Major Dreiberg."

Blake adjusted his position in the seat.

"And there's this incident with that Russian Ubermensch, coincidentally," The Rorschach could see Blake was nervous, "And according to your war record, you were an expert sniper. Rumor has it you were able to puncture Hitler's tires from one hundred feet away."

Blake shifted around.

"I think you'd better leave," he said

"OK," The Rorschach put away his notepad, "I'll be watching you."


	2. Chapter 2

Watchmen: Red Son

**

_The Rorschach's Column, New Frontiersman_

_**_

_Yesterday, I followed Major Daniel Dreiberg, of the USAF, around to the house of former vigilante Eddie Blake. Blake was nice, offered me lemonade, but when I mentioned him serving with the superior of Major Dreiberg, he was nervous. I also brought up his combat records, his sniper records. He then asked me to leave. I suspect he is up to something, involving the military. Is it possibly to do with Dr. Nuclear? Rumor has it, the legendary scientist Dr. Adrian Veidt is on a team that plans to find Doctor Nuclear's weakness. I must investigate further on this_.

**

The Rorschach followed the Major to the base, and then realized he didn't have to wait outside with binoculars. Carefully, the Rorschach pulled a tag on his belt, and a colorless gas came out. It altered the molecular composition of Rorschach's mask and gloves, and making them more like fabric. Walter tucked them away in his jacket pocket, and walked towards the base.

"Walter Colfax to see Major Dreiberg," he said

The guard behind the booth shifted position.

"Pass, please." the guard ordered

Walter handed over his ID.

"OK, go on in."

**

"Mister Colfax," Dreiberg stood in the officer's game room, in front of the pool table, "Good of you to come. Can I get you a drink?"

"Coffee, six cubes," Walter said

"Coming right up," Dreiberg walked to the bar, "Let me introduce these guys. The man by the dart board is my superior officer, Colonel Hollis Mason."

Walter looked at the man. He was smoking a cigar, grinning like a madman. He had a very thick moustache.

"The guy over here is Captain Rolf Muller," Dreiberg banged on the table, next to a passed out man, "And that girl by the cigarette machine is Drill Sergeant Ursula Zandt."

Walter looked over. The Drill Sergeant was a woman with a bob-haircut, smoking from a long holder.

"I heard about her in the news. I thought she couldn't enlist since she was…"

"Special order by President Nixon."

"Hurm…" Walter muttered

**

The two of them sat down at the bar, and talked.

"So, as I understand, you're the government liaison with the Nite Eagle program?" Walter asked

"Yeah," Major Dreiberg took a big gulp of his beer, "Whatever Nite Eagle needs I get it for him. His Eagle-Ship was my design."

"Could I see it?"

"Well…OK, just this once. You can meet the scientists at the same time."

**

The two of them walked to a hangar on the other side of the base. Walter saw the Nite-Eagle's ship; it was an airship, designed with no corners. It had a white front, but the rest of it was pitch black. Two portholes in the front glared liked the eyes of the aforementioned bird, and a large beak stuck out at the front.

"Lack of corners prevents it from being detected by radar," Dreiberg said, "And the beak lets it slash through enemy barrage balloons."

"Impressive," Walter said, "Could I take a picture?"

"No, it's a top secret design. Now, if you'll follow me, the scientists are through here."

**

Walter met the scientists, who were an odd bunch. They all lived in fear of Major Dreiberg, especially a Dr. Veidt. Major Dreiberg had given him a wedgie right in front of Walter, who had left after feeling uncomfortable. He soon got back to his apartment, and saw that Laurie was back from work.

"Hey Walter," she said,

"Hi, Laurie," he replied, kissing her, "How did the flying lessons go?"

"Fine. How is…" she waved her hands in front of her face

"Huh…oh, The Rorschach. I used him to follow Major Dreiberg, but then I didn't need him. Dreiberg's heavily involved with the Nite Eagle…"

**

At Rockefeller Base…

**

Dreiberg was disappointed by Colfax's visit. He had expected the editor of his favorite newspaper to be more abrasive, tougher. Still, he had work to do.

"Danny boy, are you ready?" Colonel Mason asked

"Yeah,"

Dreiberg reached to the bookcase, and opened it up. He disappeared inside it, and came out wearing a grey suit with a cowl shaped like an eagle's head, and a brown and white cape. He wore brown briefs and had a belt containing many weapons he invented himself.

"Ready, Nite Eagle?" Mason asked

"I'm ready," grinned Dreiberg

**

Nite Eagle and Mason walked to the Eagle-ship.

"Your mission is to assassinate that investigative reporter that came by earlier," Mason explained, "Use any means necessary, but try to avoid civilian casualties."

Nite Eagle nodded, and climbed up a steel ladder into the Eagle-Ship. Inside, it had a red light illuminating the cockpit, plus two seats. There were lighted switches everywhere. Nite Eagle took a seat, and fired up the engines. The Eagle-ship glided out silently into the night…

**

Walter sat in his study, monitoring radio transmissions. He was writing down the crime reports on the police scanners, seeing if there was anything needing investigation. In the background, he had a jazz record playing: You're my thrill, by Billie Holiday. He was having a good time, when suddenly, there was a loud warning sound. Walter banged on the desk, and a hidden tracking screen slid up. It was built to detect anything radar resistant. Something was coming towards him. Walter immediately got up, and looked out the window, where the object was coming from: nothing in sight. Walter switched on a pair of high-intensity halogen lamps, and saw what it was: the Eagle-ship.

"Oh no…" he growled

Walter stepped back into his study, and then into the kitchen. Laurie was making dinner.

"Laurie, get out of the apartment," Walter ordered

"What is it?" Laurie asked nervously

"Just do it!"

**

Walter walked back into the study, and heard the front door close. He opened up the light switch, and pressed the button beneath it. Titanium panels slid over the windows, providing some protection. Nite Eagle wouldn't be able to take him out from a distance, even with armor piercing bullets. Suddenly, there was a loud hissing sound, and Walter turned around to see a burning circle in one of the panels. The circle fell down, and Nite Eagle stepped through. He carried a deadly looking weapon in his hands.

"Walter Joseph Kovacs?" he asked

"That's Colfax," Walter reminded

"Please. That's just a pen-name."

"You're one to talk, Nite Eagle. Or should I say…"

Walter turned on a projector resting on his desk. It showed security footage of a Nite Eagle changing his costume. Nite Eagle in the footage had Dreiberg's normal sour look. The real Nite Eagle had a terrified look on his face.

"Major Dreiberg? And don't worry about the tape; if I'm killed then there are about ten other people with the tape who will release it upon learning of my death."

Nite Eagle lowered the gun. Although he didn't show it, he was terrified. The idea of people knowing his secret identity was scary. And Walter being a journalist…he couldn't force every American to keep quiet, he couldn't relocate them all.

"Don't release the tape," Nite Eagle croaked

"I won't. But I need a favor from you."

"Anything."

"I hear that you and your team are going to the USSR, to meet Dr. Nuclear, maybe even assassinate him."

"So?"

"I want the New Frontiersman's top reporter with you."

"You don't mean…"

"Yes. I want you to take The Rorschach…"


	3. Chapter 3

Watchmen: Red Son Chapter Three

Dr. Veidt and Major Dreiberg stood in the lab, looking over a set of blueprints.

"We can order the pieces for it from the factory in Chicago," Major Dreiberg said, "Any thoughts?"

Veidt studied the design.

"This is very well drawn up," he said, "I think this could work, but we won't know for sure."

"It'll work. I designed it, didn't I?"

"I don't know, did you?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, people say that most of your plans bear a great similarity to…"

Dreiberg unholstered his gun, and placed it on Veidt's head.

"I dare you to finish that sentence," Dreiberg growled

"OK!" Veidt raised his hands in panic

"Good."

Dreiberg fired the gun anyway, spilling Veidt's blood all over the floor. He then picked up his phone.

"I need a cleanup in room 119," Dreiberg said, "And fire up the incinerator…"

**

Walter Colfax was in the office, working late on an article. He was pacing around, trying to figure out how he could finish it quickly, so he could get home.

"OK…" he kicked his desk angrily, "I should know how to do this."

He started to write something on his notepad. It was an article on nuclear power, concerning the Berkley University protest of the local plant. It should have been simple, but the mention of the word 'nuclear' terrified him. Then he had an interesting thought. He crossed out the article title(Nuclear Power: Nothing To Fear) and replaced it with: "Fear has a PHD: Dr. Nuclear's Name Explanation.". Suddenly, Walter's mind was filled with so many ideas, that he had to sit down. Quickly, he grabbed the phone.

"Seymour, it's Colfax," Walter said

"What's up?"

"Two words: Pulitzer Prize…"

**

Laurie was standing in her gym, closing it up. It was her privately owned business, what had supported her before she married Walter. She was almost done closing down, when suddenly, the door opened, revealing a pale-blonde woman in a leather flight jacket.

"Laurie…" she said, in a heavy Russian accent

"Mother…!" Laurie breathed, "How did you find me?"

"The USS government paid for a private investigator," the woman continued, "I've been told to bring you home."

"This is my home…" Laurie reached behind the counter for a weapon, when suddenly, someone grabbed her.

"Honey, this doesn't have to be difficult…" Laurie's mother reached into her jacket, and took out a needle filled with blue liquid…

**

Colonel Mason was at the firing range with Eddie Blake, discussing the mission with him. Blake was assembling a rifle.

"This is definitely the one for the job," Blake grunted, snapping it together, "It's lightweight, reliable, and has perfected sight."

"You sure you wouldn't prefer a newer model? We've got some of the new ones, with laser targeting."

"Nah, those are very badly made, most of them in China. This…"

Blake aimed the rifle at a target very far down the range, and fired two shots. He then brought the target up to him. It was a paper cut-out of a German paratrooper, with both his eyes shot out.

"Can you still dislocate someone's shoulder without shooting through it?" Mason asked

"You'll see when we get to Russia," Blake grinned, lighting a cigar

Walter Colfax/The Rorschach

Major Dreiberg/ Nite Eagle II

Laurie Jupiter/ Captain Spectre

Eddie Blake/ Punch-Line

Dr. Nuclear

Adrian Veidt/ The Pharaoh

Hollis Mason/ Nite Eagle I


	4. Chapter 4

Watchmen: Red Son

Chapter 4

**

The Rorschach was at Dreiberg's place, going over the mission. Colonel Mason was also there, and Eddie Blake.

"Dr. Veidt theorized that Dr. Nuclear's future perception could be distorted by tachyon disturbance, so we've developed a micro-tachyon generator to avoid him seeing his own demise."

"Hurm…" The Rorschach studied the generator, "This'll work, but what will we use to kill him?"

Dreiberg flicked a switch, and the room started to glow.

"Tachyons," Dreiberg explained, "We've had them in all the meeting rooms, whenever we discuss the project."

Mason handed The Rorschach a gun.

"This fires a special bullet that will take him apart, one atom at a time. But it has to be aimed directly between his eyes, so we can destroy his brain."

"I see," The Rorschach made a mental note of this, since it was too dangerous to write it down

Dreiberg switched off the tachyons.

"OK, now, the trip is in one week, so we'll all meet at the airport, and take the Eagle ship. Rorschach, you'd better pack warm clothes, it's very cold in Russia."

"I'll be fine," The Rorschach said, "You'll see…"

**

One Week Later…

**

The four of them sat in the Eagle-ship, flying over Moscow. Dreiberg was fully suited up in his Nite-Eagle costume, The Rorschach had his standard trench coat, but he had two sweaters on underneath it, plus thick socks and gloves. He also had two guns. Colonel Mason had his military uniform on, and Blake was wearing a very thick coat.

"ETA thirty minutes," Dreiberg said, in his deeper Nite Eagle voice, "Does everyone know there assignment?"

"We know," The Rorschach also spoke in a different voice, but his was more of a monotone, "Don't worry ,Nite Eagle, this won't go wrong."

**

Soon, they arrived, touching down outside the Kremlin. The four of them disembarked, and were greeted by a man known as Karl.

"Welcome, Comrade Eagle, Comrade Rorschach," Karl grinned, shaking their hands, "Colonel Mason, Comrade Blake…"

He ushered them inside, and revealed a stone walled room, well lit, with a red carpet and beautiful paintings on the wall. They walked into a large hall, where there was a stage and several rows of chairs. Journalists from all around the world were there, ready to meet Dr. Nuclear. As the four of them entered the room, people stared at them.

"Typical American theatrics," one reporter commented

"Het is als de kompt uit van een stripboek!" laughed a Dutch reporter

"They look like they came out of a comic book!" an interpreter laughed

Nite Eagle took out a gun, and fired at the reporter. His gun shot out a small tranquilizer dart, knocking the guy out.

"Daniel!" hissed Mason

"He'll be fine in half an hour," Dreiberg sat down in his chair, "Hey! Let's get Dr. Nuclear out here!"

**

Five minutes later…

**

Nikita Khrushchev walked onto the stage, and adjusted the microphone. He spoke in Russian, and several interpreters translated for him.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," the English translator announced, "I am pleased to welcome the guest of honor, the man you are all here to see. My personal friend, Dr. Nuclear!"

The Russian national anthem played, and Dr. Nuclear walked in, wearing his trademark black suit. Nite Eagle slid his cape aside, and pressed a button on his belt. The lights in the room turned off, to cloak the killing.

"What's going on?" a journalist asked

"Someone turn those back on!" an ambassador ordered

Eddie Blake took the shot; in a flash, he pieced together his gun from items in his pockets: a pen, a lighter, a cufflink, and a cigarette case. He fired the gun, and the bullet shot out. Dr. Nuclear detected a small change in air currents, but ignored it. Then suddenly, he felt a stinging sensation in his forehead, like as if he had a static shock. Then suddenly, he realized it was a bullet. The shock of not knowing threw him off guard.

"Aaaah!" Nuclear exclaimed

The bullet penetrated Dr. Nuclear's skull, but Nuclear was ready. He shifted his brain around, replacing the bullet's target with a compilation of brain material that was useless. He still felt a slight sting as the bullet destroyed the useless brain matter, but then the bullet was used up, and safe to destroy at a molecular level.

**

"Let's get out of here," The Rorschach hissed

"Just a second…" Nite Eagle switched on his Eagle-vision goggles, and took out his gun, "I've just got a couple of people I was asked to kill."

He fired two shots, but then stopped.

"Rorschach, which guy is Khrushchev?" he whispered

"That bald fat guy," The Rorschach replied

"Oh, thanks." Nite Eagle shot the guy

**

Three hours later, Dr. Nuclear was certain he knew the side effects of the bullet. Vadim Velkov, his friend and personal scientist, had noticed a change in him.

"What's wrong, Dr. Nuclear?" Vadim asked

Dr. Nuclear told Vadim about the bullet he had stopped.

"So?" Vadim asked

"I've figured out what the excess brain tissue was," Dr. Nuclear said, "It was the part of me that could see the future…"

**

One week later…

**

The Rorschach was in his study, writing another article on his visit to the Soviet Union. Laurie came in, bringing him his dinner.

"Thanks Laurie," he said, "I'm sorry to be working so long, but I've just got so many ideas."

"It's OK, hon," Laurie said, "It feels so weird not being able to tell anyone about this. I feel as if I'm going to burst."

"I know what you mean," The Rorschach said, "I…"

He stopped talking, and stared at Laurie. She had two marks on her neck, as if someone had bitten her.

"Laurie, where did those come from?" The Rorschach asked

Laurie felt the marks.

"I don't know," she said, "I…I don't remember getting hurt. Probably just a mosquito."

"Yeah."

The Rorschach continued writing, and started to eat. Laurie laughed.

"What is it?" he asked

"You've still got your mask on."

"Oh!" The Rorschach took it off, and stuffed it in his pocket, "Thanks. Honestly, sometimes it feels like that's my actual face…"


	5. Chapter 5

Watchmen: Red Son

Chapter 5

**

Three years after the Dr. Nuclear incident…

**

The Rorschach had won two Pulitzer prizes for his articles on the attempted assassination of Dr. Nuclear, and the four of them had gotten a special award from President Kennedy. It was incredibly lucky that they were in Dallas that day; Nite Eagle punched a guy who looked like he was pointing a gun at the President. It turned out that the guy had a sandwich, but it had distracted the guy who was actually planning to kill the President. Kennedy had personally thanked Nite Eagle, but The Rorschach saw the look in his eyes; the disappointed look, the kind he had seen in Seymour's eyes when the cute intern at the New Frontiersman turned his dinner invitation. It became clear to him that Kennedy had wanted to die, and The Rorschach's suspicion was confirmed a year later, when it was revealed that Kennedy was suffering from a crippling disease, which first weakened him to the point of needing a walking stick, but had now confined him to a wheelchair.

**

June 1st, 1965…

**

The Rorschach was at Rockefeller Military Research Base, interviewing the newest addition to the Anti-Dr. Nuclear Club. He was a scientist named Jon Osterman, who had lost his right hand in an accident similar to the one Dr. Nuclear was suspected to have been involved in.

"You see," Dr. Osterman explained, "Wally decided that he wasn't going to sit around and watch me die. So he got an axe, and chopped down the door at the hinges. And my hand, it got zapped off by the field subtraction equipment. Still, I got this new mechanical hand built, government expense."

Dr. Osterman slammed the hand on a nearby desk, obliterating it.

"So anyway, the moment I get out, I turn to that chick who abandoned me at the field subtractor, I say: 'baby, take a hike'."

"Hurm," The Rorschach was furiously scribbling down what Osterman was saying, "So where is she now?"

"I don't know, don't care. You married, 'shack?"

"That's Rorschach," he corrected, "And no, I'm not."

"Shame. If I had somehow survived the Intrinsic Field Subtraction, then I probably would have married her. And what a mistake would that have been…"

**

Deep in a secret headquarters in Antarctica…

**

There was a rather large igloo in the center of the continent. It had been built around a rather large warehouse, which had been used by the Nazis in World War Two for storage of occult artifacts. Fiberglass panels made sure it kept its shape. Inside, three German businessmen had the warehouse outfitted with modern conveniences: electricity and air conditioning, but also with things you wouldn't find in a typical home; Swastika flags, video cameras, and bookshelves full of occult books. These 'businessmen' were Ludolf von Alvensleben, Dr. Joseph Mengele, and Walther von Brauchitsch, high ranking Nazis. At the moment, they were examining an urn of ashes.

"Is it him?" asked Alvensleben

"Yes, it arrived only this morning," Mengele explained, "He will be merged with the eye."

The three of them were in Brauchitsch's study; Brauchitsch was the only one who lived there full time, since everyone believed he was dead. Mengele and Ludolf preferred to stay in Brazil, where it was more comfortable.

"How soon can we start?" Alvensleben

"Immediately," Mengele replied, "Brauchitsch, go get the eye!"

**

Brauchitsch came back into the room holding a wooden box. Inside was a golden sphere, resembling a human eye.

"This is supposedly plucked from the eye of a God," Mengele breathed, "The man created from this will be able to rule the world…"

Mengele pulled on a candle of a nearby fireplace, which caused the fireplace to slide aside, revealing a laboratory. Mengele walked inside, the other two followed him.

"After years of work, I have finally managed to create a way to activate it," Mengele explained

Mengele dropped it in a bubbling clear solution. Suddenly, the entire thing boiled down to gold sludge. Quickly, Mengele poured the sludge into the urn, and placed it on an area of the ground covered by a sheet of plastic.

"You might want to stand back…" Mengele advised

**

The urn shook, and collapsed onto the plastic sheet. The ashes and gold mixed, creating a dark yellow paste. One by one, organs, bone, and skin formed, pulling together. Eventually, they formed Dr. Adrian Veidt. He stood there, looking better than he did before; he was at least ten years younger, and wearing gold armor that resembled muscles. He also had a purple robe on, which had come from the shroud he was cremated in. On his chest armor was the Eye of Horus.

"Who resurrected me?" Veidt said, with an incredibly deep voice

"We did," Mengele replied

"Thank you. You have served your purpose."

Veidt focused his enhanced intelligence on their brains. Mengele felt his head.

"Urg…" he groaned

Brauchitsch started to feel the pain too, and so did Alvensleben. Suddenly, Mengele's eyes started bleeding, and Alvensleben started coughing up blood. Brauchitsch's eyes literally blasted out of his head. Mengele collapsed on the ground, and all the blood left his body. All three of them were dead.

"Now, I'd better get to work," Veidt decided

He walked into the study, and saw what was on the TV: news reels of Nite-Eagle beating up Viet-Cong soldiers.

"You!" growled Veidt

He glared at the TV, and blew it up.

"I'll get you, Nite Eagle," he growled, "If it's the last thing I do…"

**

In Siberia…

**

Dr. Nuclear was at his laboratory in the Winter Palace, attempting to build a proton accelerator. He was surrounded by his Duplicates; they were criminals who had been given a brain operation, which allowed Dr. Nuclear to control them through his brain power. It even gave them his signature glow.

"Sir!" a Soviet soldier came in, "We have the American scientist who defected last week!"

Dr. Nuclear lifted up his hands, and the doors opened. The scientist walked in, wearing a thick fur coat, a black balaclava, and goggles.

"Nice to meet you, Doctor Slater," Dr. Nuclear said, in English

The scientist's fur coat and balaclava hung themselves up on the wall, thanks to Dr. Nuclear's powers, and the scientist was revealed: it was a beautiful woman, dark-haired and with silky smooth skin.

"Nice to meet you too, Dr. Nuclear," the woman said, "I look forward to working with you. And I have those plans you asked for…"


	6. Chapter 6

October 31st, 1965…

The Amazon Rainforest…

*****

Doc Khamandides (the alter ego of Adrian Veidt) and his crew were setting up camp in the jungle. Doc Khamandides was standing on a rock, spying on an Incan temple. He stood there, wearing a torn khaki shirt, his muscles gleaming in the sunlight. He wore a strange golden cap, which gave the appearance of an exaggerated widow's peak, but with the Eye of Horus imprinted on top.

"What's up, Doc?"

Doc turned around, and saw one of his associates, a man named David. David was Native-American, an archer/engineer.

"I've found the hidden mountain, and we'll start climbing now."

"Good," Doc Khamandides nodded, "David, use Bow 'E', and get John to make some Lemon acid, in case Mick finds jagged rocks."

*****

New York…

******

The Halloween party at the Colfax house was going well; most of the New Frontiersman was there, and so was the Anti Dr. Nuclear Club. Walter and Dreiberg stood by the bar, eyeing the guests.

"So, what's the deal with the Vietnam situation?" Walter asked

"We've got it under control for now," Dreiberg replied, "But we're afraid that Dr. Nuclear might side with the Viet Cong."

"Isn't that the decision of the Soviet government?"

"I wish," Dreiberg sighed, "Dr. Nuclear practically runs the country, at peak efficiency; it's getting harder and harder to enforce the ban on him."

"Why do we need the ban?" Laurie walked up to Dreiberg, "Dr. Nuclear saved people's lives."

"Yeah, and most of the people he saved attempted to defect to the Soviet Union," Dreiberg growled

"So? Don't you think people should have a choice?"

"Forty percent of high school students use drugs," Dreiberg explained, "They chose to."

"You can't count that!" Laurie argued

"Criminals choose to break the law."

"Sometimes they need to! What about people who steal to feed their families?"

"Then they should steal a loaf of bread, instead of a Porsche."

"Rrrrg!" Laurie stormed off angrily

"You really shouldn't aggravate her," Walter said

"So I'm not allowed to have an opinion?" Dreiberg asked

"Well you don't need to force it onto others."

"I'm a military man; that's my job."

"Yeah, fair enough."

The party had reached its peak, and guests were dancing. But then, the music was interrupted by a newsflash; Doctor Nuclear had announced that he was siding with the Viet Cong, and was going to enter combat himself. The guests were shocked to hear it, but soon resumed partying. Dreiberg approached Walter.

"We've got to get to the lab," he said, "I'm sorry to abandon your party, but we have a lot of work to do."

"It's OK," Walter said, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not for now. I'll call you, if anything comes up."

******

Dreiberg waved his hand, and several guests walked out. Dr. Osterman, Colonel Mason, Edward Blake, Dr. Gardner, Dr. Brady, and Byron Lewis, left in an orderly fashion. The six of them piled into Dr. Brady's car, a modified station wagon, and started to drive to the lab.

"Major Dreiberg, what's our top priority?" Dr. Brady asked

"We'll need to make the anti-Dr. Nuclear bullets more convenient," Dreiberg growled, "They'll have to be mass produced."

"OK, I want three ideas from each of you when we get to the lab," Colonel Mason announced, "And we'll need a list of people who are our top enemies. Danny, start brainstorming."

"OK, number one: Dr. Nuclear."

"Obviously."

"Number two…" Dr. Brady scratched his ear, "Edgar William Vaughn."

"Who?" Mason asked

"Moloch, remember?" Blake said, lighting up a cigar, "Magician guy, he spent the fifties in jail."

"He hardly seems like trouble," Mason said, "we destroyed the source of his powers, remember?"

Dr. Brady eyed Byron Lewis. Dreiberg thought it was a strange action; Byron Lewis was just a ten year old kid, the son of a soldier at the base. Byron turned his head, and muttered something.

"Moloch shared a cell with some of the greatest criminal masterminds of our time," Dr. Brady explained, "He's wise in the ways of criminology."

"I never thought of that," Blake said, "And while we're at it, who did he share his cell with?"

"Underboss," Dr. Gardner snapped his fingers, "In fact, we might prioritize him over Moloch."

The six of them soon got stuck in traffic, in the middle of a tunnel.

"Rrrrg!" Dreiberg growled, honking the horn, "Come on! Move!"

"You know, we could get through this," Dr. Brady said, scratching his ear again, "I've made some modifications to the car."

"Do it!" Dreiberg ordered

Dr. Brady pressed a button on the dashboard, and the car's license plates disappeared, and the windows blackened. For a moment, they were stationary, then the next, the entire car shot forward, narrowly missing the vehicle in front of them. Dr. Brady swerved right into the tunnel wall, and flicked a switch that caused the wheels to rotate 90 degrees. To everyone's surprise, the car started to climb the wall of the tunnel, and shot ahead. Soon, they cleared the blocked up tunnel, and flew right over the car crash that was causing the trouble.

*****

The Winter Palace...

*****

Doctor Nuclear stood in his private office, which was a warehouse extension of The Winter Palace. He stood in mid-air, observing Vietnamese activity. A large number of his Duplicates were being deployed there, enough to fill an entire squadron.

"Yaakov!"

Dr. Nuclear turned around, and saw Dr. Slater standing behind him.

"Yes Janey?" he asked

"Yaakov, the Americans are reacting to your military involvement!" Janey said with glee

"What?"

Dr. Nuclear spun around, and his hands shot out, projecting a large TV image. He grinned evilly as he saw President Kennedy's emergency address.

"It's starting," Dr. Nuclear grinned, "Soon, it will be ours…"

"I'll get my revenge on those American pigs," Dr. Slater grinned, "That'll teach them to force me out."

"Yes, but I'd better take a look at those plans,"

Dr. Nuclear held out his hand, and a scroll appeared in it. He flattened it out on his desk.

"If the Americans are going to go up against us," Dr. Nuclear said, "Then we'd better go ahead and attack. Arm the missiles; I'll send them to the US bases in South Vietnam myself."

******

Back at the Base…

******

The bullets were already in mass production, in the factory owned by Nite Eagle. The scientists were working on a new weapon of theirs, a mass-teleporter, one that could match Dr. Nuclear's powers.

"Is it working yet?" Nite Eagle asked

"Major Dreiberg, it will take longer than a few minutes!" Dr. Brady said, "If you want us to speed it up…"

"…then you should cut the ventriloquist act, and just let the kid directly interface with the work," Dreiberg said

Dr. Brady and Byron Lewis exchanged glances. Then Dr. Brady took out the earpiece that let him hear Byron's instructions.

"It's true," Dr. Brady said, "How did you know?"

Nite Eagle tapped on his cowl ears.

"I can detect radio transmissions. I don't really care how long you've been doing this, or what the kid knows, just let him do the work, and you do the heavy lifting!"

"Yes sir," Dr. Brady hoisted Byron up on the work bench, "OK, buddy, do your stuff."

At once, Byron got to work on the matter transporter.

"Theoretically, this should work," Byron said, "I'm using the principals of hyperspace, the idea that ther is another dimension beneath ours that can be used to go from one point to another in no time. As soon as the war is over, I'll develop it into a time machine for research. But until then, I can't let it fall into enemy hands."

*****

The Amazon Rainforest…

******

Doc Khamandides was the last of his team left alive, in the temple of the Denaha people. It was filled with so many traps. Doc walked to the center of the pyramid, and picked up a metal plate. It was just like his golden cap, only the eye of Horus was on the inside. Doc placed it over his head, and the pieces locked together. He glowed gold, and he felt absolute power.

"Arise, fallen comrades!" he yelled

David, Mick, and John arose; their wounds healed, and they came back to life, glowing like Doc Khamandides.

"Now, I can finally have my revenge on the man who killed me," Doc growled

******

Russia…

******

Dr. Nuclear saw ten nuclear missiles were stacked up in front of him; because of his magnetism towards radiation, he couldn't go near them, and they had to be packaged in lead before he could teleport them.

"Janey, this is taking too long," Dr. Nuclear growled, "Why must you insult me with this cheap labor?"

"They're working as hard as they can," Janey protested, not wanting to make him angry

"Maybe I can help them…"

Dr. Nuclear summoned a crate full of the implants used in his Duplicates; he lowered his energy outputs, and teleported them into the worker's heads; they started to work faster, and more efficient.

"Yakov, those men did nothing wrong!" Janey exclaimed, "Now you've practically killed them!"

"Shut up," warned Dr. Nuclear, "Unless you'd like to join them?"

The Duplicate implant hovered menacingly around Dr. Slater's head.

"No, I won't intrude anymore," Janey said quickly, "Do whatever you feel you need to do!"

"As you wish…"

Dr. Nuclear snapped his fingers, and the implant bonded with Dr. Slater; the emotion vanished from her eyes, and her hair fell out from the background radiation the implant had received from being around Dr. Nuclear.

"I will obey…" Janey said monotonously

*****

The Base…

*****

"Major Dreiberg!" Eddie Blake ran into the room, "The factory workers have completed the first shipment!"

"Excellent," Dreiberg said, "Byron, are you almost done?"

"Yes sir," Byron replied

"Good. We'll conduct the test now…"

Byron aimed the teleport ray at a crate, and fired. A phone call from a soldier in Vietnam confirmed that it had arrived safely.

"Great, now ship all the bullets!" Dreiberg ordered, "And send those experimental laser mortars that we've been working on too."

The Amazon Rainforest…

Doc Khamandides and his men were marching directly through the forest, knocking down everything in their way. They were not heading to where Major Dreiberg was now; they were heading to where he would be when they could intercept him: North Vietnam, twelve hours from now…

******

The Colfax House…  
******

The party had died down sufficiently, and the guests had left. Walter was on the phone with Dreiberg, writing down as many details as he could.

"Anti-Nuclear shielding…" he muttered, "Must get laser mortars in position. Byron 'Bug' Lewis child genius. Dr. Brady a dummy. Got it, won't print that…"

"Walter," Laurie asked, "I have something to show you."

Walter turned around, and saw Laurie was standing there holding his gun.

"Laurie, put that down, you could hurt yourself," Walter warned

"It's not her she's concerned about,"

A woman stepped out from behind Laurie, wearing a dark green army uniform, and wearing metallic gloves.

"I'm controlling her actions," the woman explained, "Brain implant we gave her; she 'volunteered' to be one of the test subjects for Dr. Nuclear's Duplicates."

"Wait a minute…" Walter looked closely at the woman, "You're Salva Juspeczyk, the leader of that female fighter plane pilots, the…Silk Specters."

"Correct; I'm also this girl's mother, but I haven't thought of her as my daughter since she defected from the home land."

"Whatever you're doing to her, stop it!" Walter growled

"I can't; she has to kill you, or her brain will explode. You either have to stand there and die, or…you kill her. Either way, we'll be taking your notes on American weapons."

Walter didn't move; as much as he loved his homeland, he loved Laurie even more. She was what personified the nation, her free-spirited self…killing her would be no different than striking down Lady Liberty.

"I can't do it…" Laurie croaked

A drop of blood trickled down from her nose, and she fell down to the ground, dead.

"No!" Walter growled

All of a sudden, all of Walter's pent up anger made itself noticed; it was boiling inside him, about to burst. His anger at his mother, his anger at the criminal scum he had seen, and his anger at himself for not doing what he knew was necessary. He needed to release it, but how? Then he reached into his pocket, and found the cloth version of his mask he carried for emergencies. Walter pulled it on, and walked towards Salva Juspeczyk, his arms reaching out, preparing to strangle her.

"Tell me, Salva," he growled, "What do you see in my mask…?"

******

The Base…

******

The Rorschach arrived half an hour later, dressed in his blood-splattered trench coat, fedora, and cloth mask.

"Rorschach!" Dreiberg said, "Get over here! We're leaving for…what happened to you?"

"Ran into some mother," The Rorschach said, his voice hoarse and monotonous, "Finally found practical use for an electric can opener."

"OK…anyway, get in the Eagle-ship, we're going to Vietnam, and we'll need a combat correspondent."

*****

The next day…

******

The warring parties had all crossed paths; they were all in their positions, preparing to destroy each other; Dr. Nuclear was at least ten times his normal size, blowing up any soldier who shot at him. The Rorschach, Eddie Blake and Dr. Osterman (Using Doctor Gardner's Judo-Master identity) were on the ground, preparing to slash the throats of unfortunate Viet-Cong soldiers or Dr. Nuclear Duplicates. Major Dreiberg and Colonel Mason were in the Eagle-Ship, blasting anything in sight. And Doc Khamandides and his men were tearing down the Nuclear missiles, unaware that they were causing a dangerous build up of radiation in Dr. Nuclear's body, one that could go off any minute…

*****

In the Watchmen Universe…

*****

Dan Dreiberg and Adrian Veidt stood around a viewing globe, observing the thermo-nuclear explosion that had just occurred in the 'Red Son' scenario. The viewing globe could show a rough hypothetical situation of what would happen if certain events in time were changed.

"No good," Veidt said, "Changing Dr. Manhattan's place of origin would only result in a swifter devastation."

Dan nodded, and crossed it off his list.

"I really wish it could be more simple. In fact, I'm almost considering killing the first Minutemen, just so there would be no vigilantes in the first place, and the world wouldn't have gotten into the horrible withdrawl from Rorschach's disappearance."

"True, I never realized how much of a key component Rorschach was to our society," Veidt sighed, "Well, what's the next plan?"

"Plan 2005," Dreiberg explained, "What if Jon Osterman never became a scientist?"

"Hm. Worth a look…"

********

The End…


End file.
